Bone of My Bone
by PrincessFi
Summary: Gibbs fears the worst when Tony keeps a secret, but the truth makes him take another look at his senior agent.
1. Chapter 1

Thanks to Iantalia for reassurance and Twinx for fussiness and suggestions. This is an 8 chapter fic, and I will try to post every couple of days. Please feel free to review or PM with comments.

**Chapter One**

Looking back, Gibbs thought he should have worked it out earlier. The clues were there, if he'd looked hard enough, scattered through the previous weeks. Tony had been distracted. He'd occasionally arrived late in the mornings, and twice had been late returning from lunch. And there were the quiet conversations with Ducky that stopped when Gibbs walked in. Most telling was a "please call" message from the hospital for which Gibbs never received a proper explanation.

Tony asked for the Friday off, another rare occurrence that made Gibbs' gut start humming. But they weren't on call that weekend, so he acquiesced and resolved that come Monday he would ask some hard questions and not stop asking until he got answers.

When Monday morning came Tony arrived in the bullpen looking noticeably worse for wear, moving slowly and with dark circles beneath his eyes.

Was that why he wanted Friday off? Gibbs fumed, surprised. Just so he could have a big weekend?

Just as Gibbs was about to call his Senior Agent into the elevator for a serious heart to heart, his phone rang. A body took precedence over his curiosity.

The body in question was a Marine private and he lay in the doorway of an abandoned warehouse near the docks. Cause of death was obvious – a gaping gunshot wound to the chest.

The team spread out to canvass the area, and Ducky crouched down over the body to take the liver temp. Suddenly the door to the warehouse burst open and a scrawny figure exploded past the doctor and sprinted away. DiNozzo was closest. Instinct kicked in. It only took a few seconds for him to catch the fleeing figure and bring him down with a tackle.

But as the two figures fell they rolled, and when they hit the ground Gibbs heard an unexpected sound - a loud cry, a yelp, of pain from his agent. Calling for Ducky, he sped over to them. The suspect struggled frantically, thrashing out with one leg as DiNozzo, lying on his side, hung on grimly to the other. Gibbs grabbed the suspect and within seconds had him face down on the ground and handcuffed. Then he turned his attention to DiNozzo, who lay on his side drawing rasping, laboured breaths.

"Tony!" Gibbs dropped to his knees, running his hands over his agent's chest and back, searching for the stab wound or other injury. He found nothing. But Tony's eyes were clenched shut, his face grey and clammy.

He looked up and opened his mouth, but Ducky was already dropping to his knees behind Tony. The ME pushed Gibbs' hands away, pulled Tony towards him and cradled him in his arms.

"Breathe, Tony," he instructed, bending down to speak softly into the agent's ear. "Just breathe evenly and slowly. Concentrate on my voice. The pain will fade. It's fading now. Relax your face, your hands, your legs. Just relax your body, and breathe."

Tony's face softened and his breathing slowed. Finally he opened his eyes and blew out a long, slow sigh. He moved to rise but Ducky halted him.

"Kneel, don't sit," the ME suggested gently, "and take it slow."

Tony did as instructed, moving onto his knees. Gibbs reached to steady him and Tony grasped his forearms. Their eyes met. After a moment they moved as one, both rising to their feet. Tony swayed unsteadily for a moment before righting himself and releasing his grip on Gibbs' arms.

"Thanks Boss," he murmured.

Ducky stood behind him, one hand resting on Tony's back. "Go and wait in the van, Anthony," he instructed quietly. "I'll take you home on our way back to headquarters. Mr Palmer can go on without me and prepare the body for autopsy."

Tony simply nodded, dropped his head and began walking slowly, stiffly, towards the van.

Gibbs had barely opened his mouth when Ducky raised his hand. "I am not discussing this with you Jethro. I'll examine Anthony when I get him home. If I feel it is necessary, I'll write him a sick certificate. I will inform you if he is fit for duty, and if not, when he will be. Beyond that, if it is unrelated to the job, all matters pertaining to his health are subject to doctor/ patient confidentiality".

With that Ducky turned on his heel and followed Tony. Gibbs clenched his jaw. With a body in the van and a suspect in cuffs now was not the time for questions, but the time was damned close. Ducky might get away with hiding behind doctor/patient confidentiality, but there was no way Tony would be so lucky.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

By the time Gibbs knocked on Tony's door late that evening the fire of his anger had died and in its place lay a knot of concern that flexed and tightened.

Ducky answered at the first knock. Without a word he stepped back and allowed Gibbs to enter.

"How is he?" Gibbs asked simply, turning to face the doctor.

"He's fine," Ducky reassured him. "He's resting now and should have the day off tomorrow. After that, he can return to work but desk duty only until the end of the week. He can resume full duties next week."

Gibbs shook his head. He fixed Ducky with a stare. "I know about the hospital appointments," he hazarded.

"Nice try."

Gibbs snorted and rolled his eyes.

"It's okay, Duck."

Gibbs turned to see Tony standing behind him, one hand resting on the door jamb. He was dressed in faded boxers and a t-shirt, his face pale, but not the sickly metal grey of earlier in the day.

Gibbs turned fully to face him. He said nothing.

"I really am okay, Boss. Really. It's just that on Friday I... I had to have a ... a...thing, on my back..."

"A minor procedure," Ducky offered.

"Yeah, a minor procedure, on my back. When I fell, I landed on the incision. It really, really hurt for minute. But I'm fine. Really."

There were too many "really"s. Gibbs waited a moment and then stepped closer to Tony. "Silent but menacing" was second nature to him, and he wasn't above using the technique on his senior agent. He stared levelly into Tony's eyes. He felt no pleasure when, after a few seconds, Tony glanced down at his feet.

But then Ducky stepped in. "That's quite enough, Jethro. Anthony has a right to his privacy, and he needs to go to bed."

Gibbs lost it. Wheeling, he turned to face the doctor.

"This minor procedure has been going on for weeks! He's been to the hospital how many times? And he's been getting calls from the oncology department." He spun back to Tony. "I got McGee to pull the numbers from your cell and I phoned them. The oncology department! Now for god's sake will one of you tell me the truth!"

His voice cracked on the last word and it came out broken and desperate in a way he had not intended.

Tony's mouth dropped open and, if he had not been so deep in anger and fear, Gibbs might have felt satisfaction.

"Boss, I'm so sorry," Tony stepped forward and rested a hand on his shoulder. "I didn't know you knew. I never meant to worry you."

Gibbs shook his head in desperation. "Just tell me. What is it? How bad is it?"

"It's fine," Tony insisted. "I'm fine. I'm not sick. I do NOT have cancer."

Gibbs opened his mouth but he didn't know what else to say. Tony shot a questioning glance beyond Gibbs to Ducky, who responded with a quick shrug. Gibbs turned back to Tony. He took in Tony's awkward posture and the dark circles beneath his eyes, and remorse swept over him. Second "b" notwithstanding, yelling at a sick or injured agent was not acceptable.

"C'mon Tony, you can tell me from your bed." It was as close as Gibbs could come to an apology. Wrapping a careful arm around Tony's waist he led him slowly back down the hallway to his room.

As soon as Gibbs released him, Tony lay face down on his bed and heaved a relieved sigh.

Ducky moved silently to his side. Reaching into his pocket he drew out a small bottle and shook two pills into his hand. A glass of water sat on the bedside table, and he handed the glass and the pills to Tony, who raised himself up on his elbows. Without argument the agent threw the pills into his mouth and downed them with a swig of water. Handing back the glass, he wiped his chin. "Not easy to swallow when you're lying face down," he murmured.

"As the actress said to the bishop," Ducky finished with a smile.

Tony gave a small huff of laughter and settled himself down on his pillow.

Ducky moved to the other side of the room where he stood leaning against the dresser. Gibbs looked pointedly at him, but quickly realised that the doctor wasn't leaving. Sighing in exasperation, he pulled the chair from beside the dresser closer to the bed. Tony turned his head to face him.

"Boss, I really am sorry for making you worry," he murmured softly. Then he drew a breath. "But it's not what you think."

Gibbs nodded and braced himself. Whatever the explanation, it had to be better than not knowing.

Tony began. "A couple of years ago when I gave blood, they asked if I'd sign up for the bone marrow donor register. I said okay and forgot about it. Then about two months ago I got a call telling me that I might be a bone marrow match with a cancer sufferer. They asked if I'd have further tests." He gave a reclining shrug. "I didn't know if anything would come of it, but I said yes."

Ducky picked up the story.

"The tests are designed to see how close a match there is between the prospective donor's and the recipient's HLAs, their human leukocyte antigens. The closer the match between the recipient's HLA markers and the donor's, the better chance there is of a successful transplant. "

"That's when they told me," Tony interrupted. "The patient was a five year old girl with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. No other treatment had worked. She was on her way out. I was her last shot." His voice was bleak and heavy.

Gibbs waited.

"The tests showed I was a good match. So more tests, lots of data they wanted from Ducky, and then a couple of tedious information sessions about risks and side effects. But I'd already made up my mind. Last Friday I had the procedure."

He paused and looked up at Gibbs, who simply raised his eyebrows.

Tony sighed and answered the unasked question. "Four needles into my back to draw out the marrow from my hip bones. Could have had a GA, but I wasn't too keen on being knocked out so I had an epidural. Duck came with me, drove me home, gave me pills."

Gibbs glared at Ducky, but the doctor returned his gaze, undaunted.

"I spent the weekend sleeping on my face - fatigue was one of the side effects they told me about. I was doing okay, I really was, until that damned perp knocked me flat onto my back."

Gibbs shook his head and stared at his senior agent. He asked the question lying heavy in his throat. "Why didn't you tell me?"

Tony shifted, rubbing his face against the pillow. He gave an ineffectual shrug. "I dunno Boss," he muttered. "I just thought, you know, I didn't...."

Gibbs gave an exasperated snort. "DiNozzo, you spend half you life trying to get my attention. But when you have a perfect excuse to demand it, you don't say anything! I don't understand you!"

"I didn't know that lying down unable to move my lower body while people stick needles in me was a skill deserving of your attention, Boss."

Mindful of Tony's condition, the head slap was quite gentle.

Tony lay silent and still. Finally he spoke again, and his voice was small. "I thought maybe Probie and Ziva would give me grief about it. You know, find a way to make it a joke. The way they did about my other... donation. And this is kinda sappy – like the plot of a really bad Hallmark movie of the week..."

Gibbs said nothing. He understood Tony's feelings, but he still didn't buy it. Tony would know that, had he told Gibbs in confidence, he would not have told the others.

"C'mon Tony," Gibbs urged softly. "The truth."

Tony's back rose and fell in a deep sigh. He lifted his face from the pillow and turned his head more fully towards Gibbs. He glanced up once to meet Gibbs' eyes, but then returned his gaze to the mattress.

"I thought... I thought that maybe .... I didn't want to say anything in case... in case, you know, it didn't work." Tony tried for a self deprecating laugh but it came out more as a huff. "I mean Boss, my DNA, what are the chances that it could save anyone?" He sighed again. "I keep thinking about the girl's parents, depending on me and my crappy marrow to save their daughter. Someone should warn them." He snorted and turned to bury his face back into the pillow.

Across the room Ducky rolled his eyes and shook his head despairingly. "I have told you, Anthony – if the transplant fails it will be because of either incompatibility, which is no-one's fault, or the condition of the recipient. Sometimes they are just too sick, or they contract an infection."

Gibbs looked at the still figure of his Senior Agent and could almost feel the crushing weight of his self doubt. He moved and sat on the edge of the bed. Resting a hand on DiNozzo's shoulder, he spoke softly.

"You do not have crappy DNA, Tony. If the transplant doesn't work, it's not your fault." He squeezed the shoulder gently. "If you are her last hope, then there is no-one I can think of who is more likely to save her than you."

Tony was still, then slowly turned his face to the side. Tilting his head, he looked blearily up at Gibbs through one eye.

Gibbs fixed him with an steady gaze. "Think about it, DiNozzo. You're a former college star athlete, now working in law enforcement. You kick in doors and chase perps for a living. You've been shot at, beaten up, stabbed, drugged, locked in a sewer, chained to a murderer, thrown out of a plane, framed for murder three times ..."

"Infected with the plague," Ducky interjected.

"Attacked by a Mossad assassin, held captive by terrorists, and blown up," Gibbs continued, "twice."

"Worked for you for 7 years," Tony added with the hint of a smile when he saw where Gibbs was leading.

"And you've survived all of it," Gibbs concluded, ignoring the interruption. "You're a survivor, DiNozzo." He fixed his eyes firmly on Tony's. "You're the strongest person I know. You're virtually indestructible."

Gibbs waited, but still Tony frowned, his mouth a tight line. With a sickening feeling Gibbs realised this went deeper than issues of physical strength. This was about something threading through every cell in his body – where he came from, the lines that had woven together to create him. And what he had been taught about himself from his earliest days.

Gibbs' eyes softened. He knew he couldn't repair that sort of damage with a few glib words. He could only think of one thing to say that might make a difference. He moved a little closer and spoke slowly, his hand gently squeezing Tony's shoulder.

"Tony, listen to me. If I was dying of a disease that could only be cured by a transplant of someone else's bone marrow, yours is the marrow I'd want."

Tony went completely still under Gibbs' hand. He looked up, still doubting, but now with a hint of a question in his eye.

Gibbs smiled and shook his head. "What, you think I'm lying? I don't lie to you Tony, never have. And if I needed to have someone else's DNA, you're the person whose DNA I'd chose."

They gazed at each other for a long moment, before Tony blinked and looked away. His eyes were distant, but his mouth had softened and the frown faded.

"And," Ducky interjected from across the room, "I suspect you two would be a good match."

Gibbs shot him a look.

"HLA-wise, I mean," the Doctor amended with an innocent smile.

Gibbs rolled his eyes. He looked down and saw Tony was looking into space a few feet from the bed. Gibbs decided to leave his words to sink into Tony's mind, to become one more drop Gibbs hoped would one day wear away the rock Tony's childhood had left inside him.

"It's late. I'm going to send Ducky home and I'll stay the night - make myself comfortable on your sofa. If you want to get up for any reason, even if it's just to hit the head, you call me. Hear me, DiNozzo?"

Ducky came over to the bed and handed Gibbs the small bottle of pills and a tube of ointment. "How are you feeling now Anthony?" he asked quietly. "Are you in pain?"

"Nope," Tony responded drowsily. "They're some good pills Duck."

"They are indeed," the ME confirmed. Bending down past Gibbs, he gently raised the back of Tony's t-shirt and slightly lowered the waistband of his shorts. Gibbs started. Tony's lower back was a swirling mass of bruises with four small puncture marks, red black dashes amid the purple and blue.

"Most of that bruising is due to the fall. The incisions were healing nicely before then," Ducky commented. "Now that you're sufficiently numbed, Gibbs will put some ointment on. You'll need some more tomorrow morning and evening." The doctor gestured to the tube he had just handed over and stared pointedly at Gibbs.

Gibbs glared up at the ME for a second, then back at Tony. So this was the price he would pay for his determination to involve himself. He sighed, flipped the cap on the tube and slowly squeezed the clear gel onto his fingers. He moved to touch Tony's back, but hesitated.

"Go ahead Jethro," Ducky urged quietly. "Just be gentle, and you won't hurt him."

Gibbs glanced at Tony's face and saw his eyes were closed and his breathing even.

Very gently, Gibbs touched the cold gel to Tony's back near his left hip, where the bruising was the worst. The younger man stirred slightly, snuffled into the pillow and then lay still again. Moving his fingers in circles, Gibbs spread the gel over the area, feeling it absorb into skin, listening to Tony's breathing slow and deepen as he slid into sleep. Gibbs stopped and squeezed more gel onto his hand. He turned to speak to Ducky, but found him gone. Looking back down at Tony, he smiled a little, and resumed his gentle application of the ointment. Tony gave a murmur and a slight snore. After covering the whole of Tony's lower back and ensuring the gel was well absorbed, Gibbs replaced the cap on the tube and set it beside the bed. He wiped his hands on a handkerchief before carefully pulling down Tony's t-shirt and raising the waistband of his shorts to just below the bruising. Finally, he covered him with bedding.

He sat for a moment staring at his senior agent. Reaching out he ran a gentle hand through Tony's hair.

"You've got my attention DiNozzo," he murmured softly, "whether you want it or not."

There was no response from the sleeping man, so Gibbs rose and headed for the couch.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Tony slept through the night, which meant Gibbs did too. It wasn't the first time the team leader had sacked out on his senior agent's sofa and it was unlikely to be the last, so Gibbs was grateful that Tony had a fondness for expensive and comfortable furniture.

As soon as he awoke Gibbs rose and went to check on Tony. He smiled when he saw that he had hardly moved from his position of the night before. Gibbs stood in the doorway for a long moment, watching Tony sleep. He remembered the burning anxiety he had felt the day before when he had thought Tony was seriously ill. At least it wasn't that, he thought gratefully, but Tony's hesitant, shamefaced confession of his self doubt had touched Gibbs deeply and left him troubled by a niggling, inexplicable sense of guilt.

Gibbs had retrieved his Go Bag from the car the night before and after a quick shower he changed into a clean set of clothes, all the while listening for any sound from the bedroom.

Finally Tony stirred, and Gibbs moved.

"I told you to call me," he growled on finding Tony sitting on the edge of the bed.

"You didn't give me much of a chance Boss."

Gibbs grunted. "How are you feeling?"

Tony glanced up at him. "Bit stiff and sore. Ducky said I would be today, so..." He shrugged and went to stand.

Gibbs quickly put a hand on his shoulder, pushing him gently back down on to the bed. He picked up the vial from the nightstand, shook out two pills and handed them to Tony. The young man hesitated for a second before swallowing them. In a quiet movement, Gibbs slipped the tube of ointment into his pocket.

Then Gibbs reached out his arms. Tony grasped them and rose slowly to standing, letting out a creaky groan as he did so.

When he was eye to eye with Gibbs, he managed a wobbly smile, and said, "See? Fine. Now shower."

Gibbs shook his head at the predicability of his senior agent and released him. "Can you make it on your own?" Tony's face had more colour than yesterday, but Gibbs stayed close.

Tony nodded. "Just gotta get moving." He began shuffling in the direction of the bathroom, Gibbs watching every step. By the time he reached the door he was moving a little more loosely, and he shot Gibbs a quick grin over his shoulder. "See?"

"You're off today, you know that?" Gibbs reminded him.

Tony nodded and rolled his eyes.

When he entered kitchen dressed in sweats and a t-shirt, his feet bare, Tony was moving more easily. He sat at the table and poured out a large bowl of cereal.

Gibbs hadn't finished. "And you're on desk duty till the end of the week."

Tony stopped, his mouth full of Cap'n Crunch. He swallowed and grimaced. "Boss..."

"Don't even try it, Tony. Ducky's orders. And I saw your back. I'm not having you out in the field until it looks a hell of a lot better than it did last night."

Tony turned big, pleading eyes on Gibbs. Gibbs countered with icy glare of death and the contest ended in seconds.

Losing some bone marrow clearly hasn't affected his appetite, Gibbs thought wryly as Tony inhaled the bowl of cereal. Gibbs finished his coffee and stood. Turning his back, he placed the coffee mug in the sink and threw a question casually over his shoulder.

"You, ah, need more of that... that ointment on your back?"

Tony paused, a spoonful of cereal held up to his mouth.

Gibbs turned back and looked at him, face blank. "Well?"

"You don't have to, Boss."

"Ducky said you need it."

Tony swallowed the last mouthful of cereal and nodded. He stood.

"Lie down," Gibbs instructed, tipping his head toward the living room.

Tony did as instructed, and Gibbs perched on the edge of the sofa beside him. He carefully raised Tony's t-shirt and frowned again at the sight. The bruises were still deep and dark radiating out from the puncture marks. Gibbs pulled the ointment from his pocket, flipped the cap and squeezed a generous dollop on to his fingers. He began applying it as he had the night before, moving in slow, gentle circles over the worst of the bruising.

And he waited.

Finally Tony spoke.

"I asked Ducky how long it would take before they knew if it had worked."

Gibbs didn't need to ask who "they" were. He remained silent.

Tony continued. "He said 2 to 4 weeks. She would've got the transplant pretty soon after they took the cells from me."

He sighed and shifted a little beneath Gibb's hand before continuing.

"If the transplant works, her blood counts will improve over the next two weeks. _If_ it works."

"Then what?" Gibbs asked quietly, not allowing the alternative.

"She'll have to be careful of infection for a few months, stay away from crowds and that sort of thing. But she'll be back to normal in about six to eight months. _If_ it works."

Gibbs' hand was still moving in slow circles. Unlike the night before, the tension in the muscles beneath his fingers did not abate. Clearly Ducky's magic pills weren't going to put Tony under after a full night's sleep. Tony's skin was warming as the ointment was absorbed and Gibbs squeezed another generous dollop onto his fingers

"So two weeks huh?" he asked quietly, resuming his gentle ministrations.

"Two to four." Tony sighed heavily. He lay with his head facing Gibbs.

"Uh huh," was Gibbs' only reply.

"Hospital Transplant Centre will notify me of the outcome."

"Uh huh."

There was a moment of silence, and Gibbs felt Tony draw a deep breath.

"You mean what you said last night? That it might be ... you know, okay?"

"Yep."

"You weren't just being nice? You really meant it?"

Gibbs' hand didn't stop moving. "You ever known me to say something just to be"nice", Tony?"

"No, Boss."

"So?"

"You meant it."

Gibbs finished applying the ointment. He wiped his fingers on a handkerchief and put the ointment on the coffee table. Then he leaned forwards slightly to look Tony directly in the face.

"There are no guarantees, Tony," he said quietly. "She'd be a very sick little girl at the moment, and while you might be a good match, you're not a family member. But if you can't save her, then no-one could have. You're giving her the best shot possible. And that's a damn fine thing."

Gibbs stood.

"I want you back on full duty next week," he stated firmly, "and that means Ducky has to clear you. So rest."

Tony gave a lying down nod, and shot Gibbs a small smile.

"Thanks Boss."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

McGee and Ziva looked up as Gibbs walked into the bullpen. He sat at his desk before answering their unspoken questions.

"DiNozzo hurt his back when he brought down Frangos," he said shortly. "He's off today, back tomorrow, desk duty till the end of the week."

McGee looked back at his screen, but Ziva kept her eyes on Gibbs.

"He'll be back tomorrow, Ziva," Gibbs said calmly. "You can see for yourself then."

Finally she turned away.

Time to get them back on the case, he thought. Gibbs had interrogated the suspect, Frangos, the day before. He was a homeless teenage junkie and, while he claimed to know nothing about the murder, did say he'd seen "sailors" in the area previously. And dealers. But when shown a photo of the victim, Private Laurence Koch, he denied having seen him before.

"McGee, I want your report on the interviews with the other members of Koch's squad and his family in an hour. I want to know every detail of his life from birth to when Ducky got him on the slab. Ziva, liaise with the local police about any drug arrests in that area."

They both settled down to work and Gibbs began reviewing the transcript of his interview with Frangos to see if there was anything he had overlooked.

He waited till lunch before going to see Ducky. The ME was unsurprised by Gibbs' account of Tony's condition. Then Gibbs got to the nub of it.

"Realistically Ducky, what are the chances of the transplant working?"

Ducky leaned back in his chair and removed his glasses. He folded the arms in carefully and placed them in his pocket before responding.

"Bone marrow transplants from non-family donors are sometimes the last resort. Around 30% of people who receive them don't survive. Their immune systems are too destroyed by the chemotherapy. They're at risk from pneumonia or other infectious disease, excessive bleeding, organ failure. The transplant may be rejected by the recipient's immune system, or the donor bone marrow may launch an immune-mediated attack against the recipient's tissues. Approximately 25-50% of bone marrow transplant recipients develop long-term serious complications. It depends on whether the recipient has been in remission before and relapsed, but I would give odds of ..." he shrugged helplessly, "... around 30%."

So that was it, Gibbs thought. Thirty percent. He tipped his head back and drew a deep breath.

Ducky looked at him steadily.

"Anthony knows this, Jethro. He has been told. And he has also been told that if it fails it is not due to any deficiency or weakness on his part. But I am sorry I can't give you any better odds than that, I really am." He sighed. "I know how much it means to him. And how he will feel if it fails."

Gibbs nodded. Thirty percent was twice the odds given to Tony himself when he had the plague, but that was different. Then Gibbs could work on Tony, cajoling, encouraging, bullying even, to ensure Tony kept his grip on life. But he couldn't do that now. Whether this child lived or died was out of his hands.

But there was one thing he could do. If the transplant failed, there was no way he would let Tony blame himself. Gibbs would not let this hurt him. He wanted Tony to appreciate that, regardless of the outcome, he had done a brave and generous thing. It would be a blow, a grievous blow, to the young man, if the recipient did not survive, but Gibbs would drag Tony through it one way or another and make him come out the other side proud of what he had done.

But right now the investigation into Private Koch's death took precedence and that seemed to have hit a brick wall. Koch was a stand-out junior marine with a spotless record and glowing recommendations from superiors, liked and admired by his squad mates. He came from a loving and now distraught family who spoke of him with pride as their "golden boy" who worked hard and never gave them a moment's worry. He had no prior criminal record, no juvenile record and no history of drug use.

Frangos gave them vague descriptions of dealers he had seen in the area. The local LEOS on the Drug Squad were less than interested in what they regarded as one more user who came to grief at the hands of his dealer, but they sent over some information about recent arrests in the area.

By the end of the day Gibbs was frustrated with Frangos, with the LEOs, with his team, with himself. He left Ziva and McGee looking over the LEOs' files and headed to Tony's, trying to wind back his exasperation as he drove.

He had checked out his agent's fridge that morning and not been impressed by what he saw, so he made a quick stop at the supermarket. When he arrived at Tony's apartment, he knocked once before letting himself in with his keys and depositing a bag load of groceries on the kitchen table.

His agent was reclining on his sofa watching Charade. He started in surprise when Gibbs let himself in and frowned when he saw the bag of groceries.

"Fridge looked a bit empty this morning," Gibbs said gruffly by way of explanation. "Thought I might make you dinner."

"Boss you don't need to do that," Tony protested. "Really, I can..."

"You can peel these potatoes," Gibbs interrupted, pulling them out of the paper bag, "if you want mash with your veal."

Tony hesitated for a moment and then smiled and shook his head. He came over and started doing as ordered, pulling a bowl from the cupboard and filling it with water.

"How're you feeling?" Gibbs asked bluntly.

"Better. Not so tired, and less sore." Tony started peeling.

"Take those tablets Ducky left for you?"

Tony hesitated and Gibbs stopped unloading the groceries to look at him.

"Some," he admitted. "He said to take them as needed, and I felt alright, so I skipped the lunch time dose."

To Gibbs' eyes Tony was still moving pretty slowly, and he knew another good night's sleep was required before Tony came back to work, even on desk duty.

"You'll take two after dinner," Gibbs directed. "And then hit the sack."

Tony stopped peeling and looked at him in exasperation. "Funny, I remember my Mother being shorter....."

Gibbs snorted. He pulled a pan out of the cupboard and put it on the stovetop. Veal steaks with tomato and rosemary sauce and mashed potatoes. Not exactly haute cuisine, but hearty and tasty.

He was pleased to see Tony had not lost his appetite, demolishing his dinner with commendable speed as Gibbs filled him in on the investigation.

"Maybe Koch had another reason for being there," Tony suggested around a mouthful of veal and potato.

"Like what?"

Tony nodded, swallowing. "Maybe he wasn't there to do a drug deal; maybe he got in the way of one."

Gibbs looked at him.

"Or maybe he went there wanting to get in the way of one," Tony added.

Gibbs pulled out his phone and made a call. "McGee, did Koch have any siblings?" he asked without preamble. Then he nodded at Tony. "I thought so. Check out the siblings for any drug connections. The way the parents spoke about him, it sounded to me as if our dead Private was not the one of their children they expected to end up dead in an alley."

He snapped the phone shut and gave his senior agent a wry smile. Tony was oblivious, happily making mash mountains and demolishing them.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs said sharply. The agent looked up, startled. "Good work."

Tony grinned.

Gibbs was as good as his word. After dinner, Tony was allowed to watch the end of his DVD of Charade, but as soon as Audrey Hepburn, Cary Grant and Walter Matthau finished trading shots and barbs, Gibbs told him it was time for bed.

"Boss, seriously. I haven't been to bed this early since....".

"Since the plague?" Gibb suggested. "Or the last time you got concussed? Get in bed DiNozzo, and I'll hit the road. I'll be back tomorrow at 0700."

Tony rolled his eyes, but Gibbs did not blink.

"Are you gonna tell me a bedtime story too Boss?" Tony asked cheekily as he lay in bed a few minutes later, teeth brushed and pills taken.

"Yep," Gibbs said shortly. "Now roll over."

Tony did as he was bid, and felt the cool gel against his skin and Gibbs' strong, slightly callused fingers moving in firm, gentle circles over his lower back.

"I'm going to tell you a story about a kid called Cody, who didn't believe that his mother was dead."

Tony turned his head and glanced up at him.

"I think I know how this story ends, Boss," he said quietly.

"You in the classroom with me, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked.

Tony gave a small shake of his head.

"Okay then, now you're going to hear my side of it." And Gibbs told him how smart Tony was to let him know Cody's mother was dead by referring to Kate, how Gibbs kept trying to keep Cody away from the windows so the snipers wouldn't take him out but trusting Tony to make the right decision, how once he realised Cody was being used he hoped Tony would find a way to get them all out of that classroom alive, how ingenious Tony's plan was to put the video feed on a loop. By the time he finished, Tony was half asleep, but Gibbs could see the small smile playing on his lips.

As he pulled down Tony's t-shirt and pulled up the covers, Gibbs heard a sleepy whisper of "Thanks Boss."

He patted Tony a little awkwardly on the shoulder, said "See you in the morning DiNozzo," and let himself out.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

The next morning Gibbs deliberately arrived a few minutes early at Tony's apartment.

"Hey Boss, almost ready." Tony was dressed in suit pants and a casual shirt, his jacket slung over the back of the chair. "Just let me clean my teeth."

Gibbs appraised him. Tony was still pale, but there was more colour in his face and his eyes were clearer. As he hurried into the bathroom, Gibbs resisted the urge to check to see if Tony had a wet nose like a healthy puppy.

When he returned, Gibbs pointed to the sofa.

"Boss...," Tony said, "you don't have to."

Gibbs stepped closer.

"Okay, okay..."

The bruising was definitely lightening now, although the puncture sites remained defiantly black and angry. Gibbs decided that it was time to get Tony's mind back on the game.

"Heard from McGee last night," he began. "One of Koch's brothers has a drug history. Kid disappeared from rehab 6 months ago. Koch has received a few calls on his cell from a prepaid phone in the last month and there are emails on his laptop from a user called "Spaz" that we think might be the brother, Simon. We're going to need your help getting the drug squad LEOs to talk to us about possible dealers. You'll be surprised to hear that Ziva failed to connect with them."

Tony chuckled. "No problem Boss."

Gibbs noticed Tony was still moving gingerly as he got in and out of the car, but he put on a bright smile for McGee and Ziva. They both watched Tony as he settled himself at his desk, but Gibbs' quelling presence prevented any interrogation.

Abby, however, was not so easily quelled. She burst, tornado-like, from the elevator into the bullpen.

"Tony!" she cried, as he rose from his chair. She moved to throw herself at him with her usual enthusiasm but stopped at the last minute to enfold him in a gentle hug. "Ducky said you hurt your back."

McGee snorted, all his previous sympathy seemingly evaporating at the sight of Abby embracing Tony. The Senior Agent shot him a look over Abby's shoulder, gave a little smile and snuggled closer.

"I did," he whined pathetically. "You should see the bruising. It's all over my lower back and butt...."

McGee snorted again.

"Poor Tony," Abby crooned. "But how did you do it? The others said you just fell?"

Tony paused, his smile faltering for a second.

"There was a bolt," Gibbs interjected smoothly, "sticking out of the concrete. He must've landed on that."

"Do you have to take medicine?" Abby asked, her face a picture of concern.

"Just some painkillers," Tony reassured her. Then his eyes sparkled. "But Ducky also gave me this ointment I have to put on my back and butt, but it's kinda hard to reach...."

Abby smiled sweetly. "Nice try, Tony," she responded sympathetically. "But I'm sure Ducky will help you. Or Palmer."

He kissed her on the side of the head. "I'll never give up trying for you Abs."

She flicked a quick look over her shoulder. "Maybe Gibbs will help you, if you ask nicely."

"The only thing either of you are gonna feel on your butts is my boot if you don't do some work soon," Gibbs growled, keeping his head down over his desk.

Abby reluctantly released Tony and turned to Gibbs. "Well, I didn't come up just see Tony. I also came to tell you Private Koch's tox and drug screens were negative. Clean as whistle. I'd be surprised if he had even been in the same room as drugs in his life. He's as clean as a freshly washed baby's bottom."

Gibbs grunted. Abby gave Tony another kiss on the cheek and left. McGee gave another snort.

Tony spent most of the day going through the files from the LEOs, stopping occasionally to stand and stretch.

Shortly after lunch, McGee managed to extract the IP address of the e-mailer and identified the messages as having come from a local internet cafe. He and Ziva went to check it out and to hand around the photo of Simon Koch obtained from his parents. Gibbs didn't miss the smirk and the wave that McGee gave Tony as they headed out, leaving him behind.

McGee phoned from the cafe to say they had had a lead on where Simon Koch might be living, and an hour later they received another call from a purring Ziva to say they had him in custody and were bringing him in. Gibbs could only hope that, having survived Ziva's arrest methods, the young man could also withstand Ziva's driving. He glanced at Tony and saw the hangdog look on his face.

"How are you going with those records, DiNozzo?" he barked, hoping to snap him out of the glums.

"Narrowed it down to three most likely Boss. Mind you, it could be a dealer who hasn't been picked up yet. But my money's on this guy." Tony winced as he stood, before walking over to drop a file on Gibbs' desk. Gibbs glanced at the mug shot and the jacket on cover of the file. Vincent Tremaine had numerous arrests but only two convictions.

"Why him?" he asked.

"Known to frequent the area," Tony began, ticking points off on his fingers, "sells Eppis, Simon Koch's drug of choice, has a firearms offence involving a Glock 9mm, the weapon used in this instance – but mainly because I looked into Simon Koch's associates at his rehab program. According to police reports lodged when they were ordered into rehab, two of his best buds gave their supplier's name as Vinnie and provided a description roughly matching Mr. Tremaine here."

Gibbs looked up, surprised.

"Koch's previous dealer was locked up. I figured once he dropped out of rehab he'd go looking for a new one. And when it comes to drug dealers, there's nothing like a personal recommendation."

Gibbs gave a slow smile. Standing, he put the file under his arm and moved from behind his desk. "I'm gonna update the Director," he said. As he passed Tony he stopped and reached up his hand. The flinch was barely noticeable, but it was there, which only made Gibbs smirk all the more when he patted Tony softly on the back of the head and gave him an "Atta boy".

When he returned from the Director's office, McGee and Ziva were standing with Tony in the center of the bullpen. McGee was smugly explaining how he had not only matched the IP address on the emails, but also had been responsible for identifying where Simon Koch was living.

To Gibbs' surprise, Tony seemed rapt and when McGee finished he reached out and patted the other man's hair, mimicking Gibbs' earlier gesture. "Atta boy Probilicious," he said warmly.

But McGee pulled away. "Tony, what the...?" He ran a hand through his hair. "Oh my god, what is that on your hand?"

Tony looked down at his hand as if surprised. "Oh, sorry Probie. I just used that cream Ducky gave me, and I must have forgotten to wash my hand ...."

"Butt cream?" McGee squawked. "You put butt cream in my hair!" He frantically began wiping at the back of his head. "God Tony, you really are ....". He gave up and stormed to the bathroom.

Ziva looked at Tony through narrowed eyes. Then she struck. In a lightening fast movement she grabbed Tony's offending hand and raised it to her nose.

"Wow Ziva, that is really kinky," Tony said with a slightly pained laugh. "I mean I never knew you..."

"Vanilla and honey," she announced. "That is my hand cream. I smelled it as soon as I walked in."

"Yep," Tony confirmed, eyes sparkling. "And he fell for it like an egg from a tall chicken."

Gibbs snorted, recognising that Tony was quoting Lee Marvin from the DVD of the night before. Ziva tried to glare, but her lips quirked in a smile. "I won't tell him – but keep out of my desk drawer."

"If you two have finished holding hands, can you tell me where you put Koch?" Gibbs interrupted.

"Interview room 2," Ziva responded smoothly. "He's all yours. He is like a cat on a hard tin root."

Now it was Tony's turn to snort.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs ordered, "You're with me."


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

When told of his brother' death, Simon Koch buried his face in his his hand and sobbed.

But he denied any involvement. Yes, he had been buying drugs from a man called Vinnie at the docks, he admitted through his tears, and yes Laurence knew it. But he never asked him to go there and had never expected him to interfere.

He readily identified Vinnie Tremaine from the police mugshots shown to him. But Gibbs knew an experienced con like Tremaine wouldn't neither crack under interrogation nor leave any physical evidence to link him to the crime. His obly option was to convince Simon that to catch his brother's killer he had to meet with Vinnie wearing a wire and see if he could extract a confession. He would coach him, Gibbs promised, and make sure there was sufficient back up in place to protect him. The young man was hesitant, but Gibbs was wearing him down. Then Koch's parents arrived and immediately put a stop to it. As soon as they were notified that their youngest child had been located, they had arrived at NCIS and demanded to be admitted to the interview room.

Sitting beside her trembling, sweating seventeen year old son, Louise Koch simply said no. "I had four children Agent Gibbs," she said, her eyes still red rimmed but her posture ramrod straight. "Now I have three. I will not risk losing another. Can't you understand that? I won't take that risk. Now unless you intend charging him, I am taking my son home."

And she did.

That evening, Tony sat silently as Gibbs drove him home. They pulled up at his apartment, and he started a little when Gibbs got out of the car too.

"Making me dinner again tonight, Boss?" he asked with a rather forced smile.

"Nope," Gibbs responded. "You're making it for me. I bought pasta and all the fixings for that amatriciana sauce you keep telling me is your specialty. I wanna see if you are as good as you say you are."

This time Tony's smile was real.

The sauce was good, and Gibbs was happy to admit it. Over dinner, Tony raised the Koch case.

"How are we going to get Tremaine, Boss?"

Gibbs gave a shrug. "Not sure that we are this time, Tony. Laurence Koch didn't tell anyone why he was going to the docks, we've got no physical evidence and I expect that the gun used to kill him is at the bottom a lake somewhere. Without Simon Koch agreeing to a sting, I'm not sure there's much we can do."

"Koch would have done it, Boss," Tony assured him. "You had him ready to agree to wear the wire. I can't understand why his mother stopped it. I mean, you'd think she'd want to catch the guy who killed her son."

Gibbs took a sip of water. "Simon is her son too, Tony," he reminded him gently.

"Yeah but he screwed up. He dropped out of rehab, and got his brother killed."

Gibbs looked at him. "He's her son, Tony, her child. She'll give him every chance at a future. And she won't put him in danger, not when she's already lost one child."

Tony just shook his head.

"It's what parents do, Tony," Gibbs explained patiently. "They forgive their kids, and they never give up on 'em. They give them every chance they can."

Tony looked up and met his eyes. Gibbs knew he was thinking of one little girl. Gibbs himself was thinking of another.

"To see your child suffer," he continued softly, "to see them in pain, it tears your heart out. You'd swap places with them in a heartbeat if you could. You'd die to save them, without hesitating, without thinking. Seeing you child suffer and knowing there's nothing you can do, that's the worst thing imaginable." He took a mouthful of pasta chewed slowly.

Tony glanced down and then back up. "They'd be waiting now. Waiting to see what happens."

Gibbs nodded. "They'd be hoping. And praying. And grateful."

Tony shot him a look.

"Grateful someone they didn't even know has given their little girl another chance."

xxxxxxxxxxxxx

The Koch case went in to the cold case file, and no one resented it more than Tony. For days he muttered under his breath about the damage it had done to their solve rate, and every now and then Gibbs would catch him looking back over the paperwork, trying to find some other angle. He kept in touch with the LEOs on the Drug Squad and Gibbs knew that if there was ever a chance to bring Vinnie Tremaine in, Tony would be there.

The following Monday Ducky cleared Tony for active duty. Tony did a good impersonation of his usual bouncing self, but every now and then Gibbs would catch him staring silently in to space. He knew what waas preoccupying him, but rather than raising it with him, Gibbs took a more indirect path.

They had caught a steady run of cases that week and, with Gibbs' encouragement, no-one worked them harder than the Senior Field Agent. Even so, by midweek it was clear that Tony's nervous energy was overwhelming him and so Gibbs gave him the lead on the next case.

By Friday, McGee was threatening to put Ritalin in Tony's coffee.

Gibbs kept Tony close outside of work too. They had dinner together a few times, and sparred in the gym to work off some of Tony's excess energy. And Gibbs took every opportunity to gently remind Tony of the good work he'd done over the years, as if creating a cushion for him to land on if the fall came. But also to make sure Tony knew Gibbs was there, right beside him, and if the news was bad he would not be hearing it alone.

They were going through dumpsters when the call came. There had been a report of a man in a navy uniform lurking in a lane and throwing a briefcase into a dumpster. The informant, an elderly woman who lived in a brownstone overlooking the lane, had been adamant he was a spy making a drop of secret documents. Despite casting a jaundiced eye over the collection of John Le Carre and Robert Ludlum books lining the shelves of her small sitting room, Gibbs had felt duty bound to investigate. He did however bring Ducky in to evaluate whether the informant was, as he put it, playing with a full deck. To his surprise, Ducky assured him that not only was the deck full, he wouldn't take her on in a game of bridge.

There was no mistaking the distinctive ringtone of Tony's mobile as it echoed inside the dumpster.

The senior agent emerged like a rocket from the garbage and was fumbling for his phone almost before his feet hit the ground.

"Tony!" McGee shouted, his head emerging from the dumpster. "Get back here."

"Can it, McGee!" Gibbs barked. He turned and anxiously watched Tony's retreating back as he walked away and took the call.

He spoke into the phone with turning around and then after a few moments snapped the phone closed and returned it to his pocket. He stood still, his head bowed. Gibbs swallowed and clenched his jaw. He desperately wanted to go to him, but he sensed that would be a mistake. He waited, letting Tony came to him, hoping Tony would come to him.

Finally Tony turned and looked up. To Gibbs' surprise, he gave a shy smile and nodded. Then he looked down and rubbed a hand over his eyes. He raised his head and slowly his smile widened into a proud beam. Gibbs couldn't help but return his smile. He walked over to Tony and squeezed his shoulder.

"Atta boy," he said hoarsely.

Tony leaned into him and gave him a playful shoulder bump. "No doubt about it, Boss. Her blood count is almost back to normal."

"Never doubted it for a minute, DiNozzo," Gibbs lied.

Tony flushed with pleasure. "I'd better tell Ducky," he said with a grin.

Gibbs nodded and clapped him on the back as he headed over to the ME, who stood on the steps of the brownstone sipping a coffee.

Then he stopped and turned back to Gibbs.

"Boss."

Gibbs looked up.

"Thanks again," Tony said with a quiet smile.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

The mysterious sailor's briefcase turned out to contain nothing more than some very suspect porn, much to the disappointment of the team and Mrs Reilly. But the team did count it as a win when, a month later, the body of Vinnie Tremaine was found floating face down in the marina. Gibbs and Tony went together to inform Private Koch's parents and, to Tony's surprise and Gibbs' satisfaction, they learned Simon Koch was still in rehab and showed every sign of making it through this time.

In the week following Vinnie Tremaine's watery demise, it seemed nothing could dent Tony's good humour and Gibbs couldn't help but enjoy seeing it.

While he had been genuinely worried about how Tony would cope if the transplant failed, it struck Gibbs that his good work had not been wasted. Tony was more relaxed, more at ease with himself and his teammates and less desperately seeking attention than Gibbs had seen him for a long time. And he was at the top of his game as an investigator – intuitive, thorough, energetic, comnfortably taking the lead with Ziva and McGee.

Gibbs realised that even before the transplant Tony had been off. He'd been unsettled and trying too hard to get attention in all the wrong ways. Looking back, Gibbs dated it to Tony's return from his time as agent afloat. Tony had come back into a team which to his eyes had moved on without him, to a more confident McGee and a distracted Ziva. He had been scrambling to get his place back when the debacle with Lee unfolded. But it was the events surrounding Rivkin's death that had done the most damage. While in Gibbs' eyes Tony had distinguished himself in his handling of that episode and shown real courage during the mission to Somalia, he had clearly been shaken by the events. And it wasn't until Gibbs had given him the reassurance he needed that Tony returned to being the confident, capable, committed agent that Gibbs had always known he was.

But about three months later it was brought home to Gibbs that there was still some work to be done.

The large buff envelope was addressed to Tony, but like all mail since they had received the letter containing modified pneumonic plague, it was delivered to Gibbs' desk. Alone in the bullpen before the other team members arrived, Gibbs turned the envelope over in his hands. The logo in the top corner identified it as coming from the hospital, and when he held it up to the light he could see it contained another smaller envelope.

Gibbs tapped it against his hand a few time before leaving it on Tony's desk.

He hardly looked up as Tony, McGee and Ziva burst noisily out of the elevator and he gave only a short grunt in answer to their greetings. His head did not move but his eyes flicked up as saw Tony pick up the envelope and, like him, turn it over in his hands.

Tony sliced open the seal and pulled out the smaller envelope inside. He looked at it briefly, and then quickly slid it back inside the larger envelope and slipped the package into his desk drawer.

"A love letter, Tony?" Ziva asked sharply, as she took her seat at her desk.

"God, I hope not," McGee commented dryly. "Last time he got one we all ended up in HazMat suits."

Before Tony could bite back Gibbs interjected. "Hey! How about less interest in DiNozzo's mail and more in your reports?"

Gibbs watched Tony carefully throughout the day. Finally he was rewarded when he saw his Senior Agent slip the envelope into a file and rise from his desk, announcing he was heading to records to check on the progress of a request he had made earlier in the week.

Gibbs gave him a few minutes head start and then followed him into the stairwell.

Tony did not look up as Gibbs took a seat beside him on the step, instead continuing to read the page held in his hands.

Gibbs waited.

Finally Tony raised his head. He met Gibbs' eyes and gave a wry smile. From behind the page he pulled out a photo. It showed a family of four, all casually dressed in shorts and t-shirts. A dark haired woman held a chubby, fair little boy of about 2. A man wearing a broad grin held a girl of about 6, and it was the girl who drew Gibbs' attention. Here face was too small for her enormous brown eyes, and skinny legs poked out from beneath a pink and yellow sundress. A matching pink bandanna covered short curly brown hair. They were on a beach, with the sun setting behind them. All beamed at the camera.

"How did they get in touch with you?" Gibbs asked quietly.

Tony huffed. "Ducky," he said. "They'd given me the pre-op meds before he told me about the Notification Form. I told him to tick 'No' to everything, but I was too loopy to see what he wrote. When I told him the transplant had worked he confessed. He'd ticked 'Yes' to the question about whether I'd receive mail from them via the transplant program if the transplant worked. He ticked 'No' to everything else, like I asked, so I don't know their surname and they don't know anything about me."

Gibb hesitated, absorbing Tony's comments but keeping his face blank. He focused on the photo.

"What's her name?" Gibbs asked quietly.

"Alice," Tony replied, turning to look at Gibbs a slight smile tugging at his lips. "Her name is Alice."

Gibbs silently shook his head, his eyes fixed on the photo.

"That's Sam," Tony continued, pointing the father, "the mother is Lucy, and the younger brother is Josh. And that's Alice." His touched the child's face softly with his finger. "They want to meet me."

Gibbs began to smile, but there was something in Tony's expression that held him back.

Tony handed Gibbs the letter. Gibbs scanned it. It was handwritten, signed by "Sam, Lucy, Alice and Josh." They were effusive in their thanks and Gibbs saw references to "our last hope" and "saved all of us, not just Alice", and words like "miracle" and "hero". The letter ended by expressing a devout wish to meet him; "We'll fly anywhere in the country to thank you in person, or we'd be happy to send you an airline ticket so you can fly out to visit us".

Gibbs scanned the letter again, committing as much of it to memory as possible.

Then Tony handed him another sheet, which he opened carefully. It was a childish drawing of five figures, two small, two medium sized, and one so big it barely fitted on the page. The small and medium figures were labelled in childish handwriting with Alice, Josh, Mom and Dad. The biggest figure was named as "My Donor". It was a pale green colour, of no particular gender, with wild blue hair and massive hands.

"Send 'em a photo of yourself, DiNozzo?" Gibbs asked deadpan, and Tony snorted with laughter. Then Gibbs looked back at the drawing. "You know," he said quietly, "they say that in kid's drawings, the size of the figures shows how important that subject is to the child." He paused, and glanced at Tony. "You're pretty big in her life right now."

Tony didn't respond, so Gibbs pressed. "You gonna write back?" he asked quietly, turning to look Tony in the eye.

Tony shrugged.

Gibbs deepened his stare.

Tony sighed. "Look, Boss, they seem like a nice family. Their little girl is getting better, everything's looking good for them. I don't want to mess that up."

Gibbs sighed in exasperation. "God almighty, DiNozzo! You saved this child's life. There's nothing you could do that would "mess that up"." He cuffed his agent firmly on the back of the head. Then he couldn't resist the temptation and ruffled the hair over the spot he had just cuffed. "Let them say thank you."

Tony tilted his head and raised an eyebrow. "That's pretty rich coming for someone who never turns up to collect his medals."

"I don't want to be thanked for doing my job, Tony," GIbbs protested. "But what you did," he shook his head, "it wasn't your job. It was beyond that."

Tony stared at the photo, a slight frown furrowing his brow.

"It's up to you what you do, Tony," Gibbs conceded. "But if it was me," he tapped the father's face in the photo, "I couldn't rest until I had shaken the hand of the man who saved my child's life."

He left Tony sitting on the stairs.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

Occasionally over the next few weeks Gibbs saw Tony looking at the photo of Alice and her family, and he realised the younger man was carrying it around in his wallet. But when Gibbs asked if he had contacted them, Tony shrugged and dodged the question. And when McGee saw him looking at the photo, Tony told him it had come from a frat buddy and tossed it casually in his desk drawer only to retrieve it later when he thought no one was looking.

So Gibbs waited. He let a few weeks pass before asking again, but again Tony shook his head and gave one of those infuriating half shrugs.

Finally Gibbs ignored the voice in his head that sounded suspiciously like Ducky and told him to butt out. It might be butting in, he thought, but it was the right thing to do. He was damned if he was going to let DiNozzo short change himself on this.

He had read the letter carefully and made a point of noting the details of the photo. Early one morning, he made the call.

"Hey Fornell. Wanna repay one of those favours you owe me?"

Fornell phoned him back later in the week with an address, and that night Gibbs sat on his couch to write a letter.

_You don't know me_, he began, _but I know the man who was your daughter's donor. _

The response, when it came, was everything he had hoped for.

More than six months had passed since the transplant when the day finally arrived. Gibbs walked in to the bullpen whistling. He had already spoken to Vance and cleared it with him, and now there were just a few hours to go. He could sense his agents were antsy – his unaccustomed cheerfulness was unnerving them, and that only made him more cheerful. Finally it was midday. He rose, and they started to follow.

"Sit," he barked.

They did.

"Ziva, call Abby, Ducky and Palmer and tell them to get up here."

With that, he strode from the bullpen, leaving his agents staring at each other in stupefaction.

Abby, Ducky and Palmer duly arrived, but had no more idea why they been summoned than the rest of the team.

Abby chewed her lip nervously. "He wouldn't be ... you know, retiring, would he?"

Ducky shook his head. "Absolutely not."

"Perhaps he got married again?" McGee offered.

"Why would he tell us about it?" Tony scoffed.

Finally the elevator doors pinged and Gibbs' voice called out "Front and centre, DiNozzo".

Tony leapt from his desk to stand in the middle of the bullpen, craning his neck towards Gibbs' voice.

Gibbs' head and shoulders appeared above the partition and then he stepped clear. In front of him stood a small girl.

"Tony DiNozzo, meet Alice Powardy," Gibbs announced quietly.

Tony's mouth dropped open and he gazed, thunderstruck, at the child.

Ziva and McGee exchanged confused looks. Abby turned to Ducky, but the ME just chuckled and shook his head.

Gibbs admitted to a slight whisper of anxiety, but the message from his gut was stronger. Tony needed this, he thought. He needed living, breathing, smiling proof in the form of this little girl to finally make him understand the significance of what he had done and the generosity of his gift. That he had saved a life.

Gibbs looked down at the child in front of him. "Alice," he said formally, "this is Tony." He looked around the assembled team. "Alice here is just getting over leukaemia. About six month ago she had a bone marrow transplant from a donor."

Abby worked it out first. "Oh my god!" she exclaimed, staring at Tony. "Six months ago you had time off because you'd hurt your back! But you didn't hurt your back! You donated bone marrow!"

Tony had not taken his eyes off the child and hardly seemed to notice when her parents, her mother carrying Josh, stepped up to stand beside Gibbs. A gentle push from Gibbs sent Alice forward and without a backwards glance she walked over to Tony.

Craning her neck she gazed up at him. He bent his head to meet her eyes.

"Are you my donor?" she asked simply.

Tony nodded.

"I made this for you." She extended her hand, in which she held a large, bulky envelope.

Tony went down on one knee and took the envelope. He opened it carefully, and pulled out a round paper plate, surrounded by yellow ribbon, with streamers hanging from it. Tony held it between his hands, looking at it for a long moment. Finally he raised his eyes to the little girl.

"Thank you," he said quietly, his voice strained. "It's the best present anyone's ever given me."

Alice looked back over her shoulder and shot a bright smile at her parents. Then she turned back to Tony.

"Am I going to be big like you now?"

Tony laughed in surprise. "Well, I don't know." Grinning, he reached for her and then paused. "Can I pick you up?" he asked cautiously.

She nodded and extended her arms.

He put his hands around her waist, careful not to crush the plate, and effortlessly placed her so she stood on his desk. He studied her for a long time before responding. "You'll definitely be bigger than you are now," he said eventually, "but I'm not sure you'll be quite as big as me."

"That's cause I'm a girl," she responded solemnly. She pointed to the plate. "My mom put a pin on it so you can wear it."

Tony turned the plate over in his hand. "Oh yeah, I see the pin," he said slowly. He shot a glance at Gibbs, who simply raised his eyebrows and smirked, enjoying DiNozzo's first encounter with the single minded determination of little girls.

Tony looked back at Alice, who smiled at him, revealing fewer than the full complement of teeth. She neither blinked nor looked away and her smile never wavered.

Finally he caved. "Ok," he sighed. Raising the plate to his jacket lapel, he fumbled with it for a moment before turning to face Gibbs, whose smirk widened into a laugh when he saw the plate had been made into a medal, with the words "My Hero" written in big wobbly six year old letters in the middle of it.

Tony finally seemed to notice the people standing at Gibbs' side. He raised his eyebrows.

Gibbs caught his look. "Special Agent Anthony DiNozzo, meet Sam and Lucy Powardy, and their son Joshua."

Sam Powardy stepped forward and extended his hand. "Thank you," he said hoarsely. "For...". Words seemed to desert him, and he simply shook Tony's hand again.

Tony nodded, understanding what the man didn't say.

Then Lucy stepped forward and to his surprise gave Tony an awkward one armed hug, her other arm still holding her son. "Thank you so much," she whispered against his ear. "Oh no, I promised myself I wasn't going to do this ..."

She drew back and Tony saw the tears in her eyes.

"Don't worry," her husband assured Tony, "she cries at coffee commercials." He gave his wife an affectionate smile.

"Only once!" his wife disputed with a snuffling laugh. "And anyway I think I can be excused this time!"

Sam looked back to Tony. "We really can't say it enough. We were... they'd told us...," he glanced at his daughter. "It was her last shot," he said quietly. "Neither of us were matches, no one in our families was. When Josh was born, we so hoped he would be, but he wasn't. So when they told us they'd found a donor, it was like a miracle, to have another chance. The doctors said not to get our hopes up, but I just couldn't help it. During the transfusion, I sat there looking at that damn bag, hoping. I tried to pray but I just kept saying "please" over and over again. And when they told us her blood counts were improving, that it was working ..." He stopped, tears now starting in his eyes. "Damn, now I'm doing it too!"

"Please, stop," Tony protested, clearly discomforted. "Really, anyone would have..."

"Anyone didn't," Lucy interjected. "_You_ did."

Tony looked at his feet, shoved his hands into his pockets and balled them into fists. "I... I didn't know that you...," he stammered. Then he stopped and his head shot up. "How did you find me?" he asked, eyes narrowing.

The Powardys glanced over their shoulders at Gibbs.

Tony stared at the team leader. "How?" he asked simply.

"Fornell. I gave him the details from the letter. He tracked 'em down."

"Even though I told you..."

"Yep."

Tony glared. Gibbs glared right back. Finally Tony huffed in exasperation, let out a small laugh and shook his head.

"Please don't be angry with Agent Gibbs," Lucy Powardy begged with a smile. "We were so pleased to get his letter. We had to wait till Alice's immune system was strong enough, but there was no way we weren't coming. We understood you were a little shy about being thanked..." McGee's snort earned him a thump from Abby, "but we just had to tell you in person. To let you meet Alice, so that you'd know." She reached out and gently touched the paper plate medal attached to Tony's shirt. "That's from all of us," she said softly.

This time Tony didn't look away. Instead he looked back at the smiling little girl standing on his desk, and returned her smile.

Gibbs spoke up. "I've booked us all a table at Houlihan's to celebrate, and we've got the afternoon off," he announced.

They glanced at each other surprised. Gibbs pointed up to the walkway above the bullpen and as one they looked up to see Vance leaning on the rail, smirking. He gave them a small wave.

Gibbs glared at the assembled team. "Well, c'mon." They scrambled for their bags.

Tony carefully lifted Alice down from the table and went to remove the medal.

"DiNozzo," Gibbs barked, and the agent froze. "Don't even think about it."

Tony gave him a pathetic look, but Gibbs didn't budge. Tony glanced down at Alice, who beamed up at him and took his hand.

They had only taken a few steps to the elevator before the child bolted away. "I'm pushing the button," she cried, rushing ahead of the agent. "Mom, can I have pizza for lunch?"

Her mother laughed. "Since she got better all she wants to eat is pizza," she explained with a shrug. "And I just can't bring myself to say no."

Tony grinned.

FIN

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

_AN : Another big thank you to Iantalia and Twinx, without whom this story would not have been posted and who talked me through an underwear crisis._

_Thank you also to all the reviewers – I have been genuinely astonished by the number of reviews for this story, and every one of them was greatly appreciated._


End file.
